Buffy Summers: Was Not The Vampire Slayer?
by moopenguin
Summary: Buffy has been asleep for seven years. What happens when she wakes up? How will she react? Will she survive the reality that she's insane?
1. Prologue

A Reality Check for Summers

**Prologue**

**Disclaimer:** These characters are not mine; they are Joss Whendon's characters. However, the characters that he had created, I made a huge twist on them. I just used the same names and the same sort of past. So in reality, these characters are not mine but the twists are mine.

Everything was a lie. The whole Vampire Slayer Destiny, the whole Hellmouth, and all her friends were a lie. Nothing was real. Nothing had ever been real. The only that had been real was that the Summers family had moved to Sunnydale, California. Buffy and her mother, Joyce was driving to the store one day when there had been a terrible car accident. Her mother had bruises and cuts, probably a few broken bones because the car had flipped over three times and landed in a ditch. Buffy however, was not fine. Buffy had been in a coma. Everything that had happened in the last seven years never happened. She was asleep and she had dreamt about everything. Now Buffy was about to discover something terrible, something so horrible that she may not be able to survive this battle. The battle: a reality check.


	2. Chapter 1: New Sunshine

**Chapter One: New Sunshine**

Buffy was standing on the road with the school bus behind her and Willow had just asked her a question when she had fainted. Her body fell to the ground from exhaustion. The whole battle was tiring. She had just defeated her demons and she hadn't slept in days. She felt as though she had slept for hours when she finally opened her eyes. Buffy had realized she was in the hospital. She had been in this building way too much, according to her. What Buffy hadn't realized was that she had never left. She hadn't realized that she had been in a coma for seven years. She grimaced as she had tried to sit up. Her body felt sore and she felt physically exhausted. Her bones ached and her stomach growled. What was hooked up to her mouth? Buffy was confused. She had only fainted so why was all this equipment here? Her eyes were fuzzy and they stung like hell. Hell was the place that she had been condemned to or so she had thought. Buffy blinked a few times and the world became a bit clearer.

"Buffy?" a familiar voice spoke. Buffy knew that voice. It was Faith.

Just as she had recognized the voice, a brunette woman had leaned over her. Why had she sounded so sincere? Buffy wondered. Yes it was her, why was she questioning her? This was all so strange. Buffy wondered what hospital she was in and what city or town or state that Giles had driven them to.

"Buffy, don't move I'll go get the doctor." Faith said with an urgent voice. She had just disappeared like thin air. Buffy was surprised. Why was she making a big deal? Buffy was terribly confused. There were so many monitors, sounds, and the light was so bright. Had the battle in Sunnydale really taken that much out of her? She had felt just fine except for the fact that she was exhausted. Buffy hadn't slept in what-a week? All the days had bled together. Buffy had blinked a couple more times and the world became clearer. There was this breathing tube that was still hooked up to her. What the hell? Buffy was terribly confused and where was Giles? She hadn't known.

Buffy had heard footsteps and two more people entered the room. A tall, black young and handsome man entered the room with Faith. "See doctor? She's awake now." She had told him.

Can someone get this damn thing off of me? Buffy had thought. Of course I was awake. Were all these people very high? Even if she had been asleep she had only been asleep for a day. Where was everyone and why was Robin dressed as a doctor?

"Robin?" Buffy had asked but her words were muffled thanks to the stupid mask.

"Don't move too much Miss Summers," Robin had said. Miss Summers? He had called her Buffy since they had gone out and she had discovered that he was the son of the last Slayer before her.

"Can we take that breathing tube off of her please?" Faith had asked.

"Whoa Miss Summers," Robin had said while he looked at Faith. Miss Summers? What the hell? Buffy was confused. "Let's do this right okay?"

Faith had nodded and looked at Buffy. "You can go home now big sis," she said with a smile.

What…Faith had just called her 'big sis?' Had she woken up in some bizarre world? Why was Faith being so nice to her? Robin turned to Buffy.

"The nurse had called your parents already Buffy, they have been waiting for a long time for you to wake up." Robin said. Buffy's eyes had widened. What was he talking about, her parents?

Okay this was not fair. Robin had known what had happened to her mother when he had tried to kill Spike. Spike…He was gone now. He had given up his life for the fate of the world. At the last minute, she had told him that she had loved him. Her eyes watered. He was gone. She sniffled and the tube had distracted her. She was brought back into reality. Faith held her hand and Buffy took her hand back. Faith looked at her strangely.

"What's wrong?" She had asked her.

Buffy turned her head away and closed her eyes. The next thing she knew, there were many doctors in the room and she was being tested for many things. Buffy had no clue what the tests were for and why Robin was so damn smart at being a doctor. Buffy just watched the nurses and the doctors do their jobs. She was too tired to care. Let them do their jobs, she had thought. Let them do their jobs and then I can go home. Dawn! Where was Dawn? She sat up quickly and tried to pull of the mask with her super strength. It hadn't worked. What? Buffy thought. Maybe she was just too tired and therefore she wasn't at her full strength.

"Buffy!" another familiar voice yelled. Buffy turned her head to see who had entered the room now.

A tall woman with a lean figure and curly blond hair stood next to her bed. Buffy's eyes widened. It was her mother.


	3. Chapter 2: Subconscious Creation

**Chapter Two: Subconscious Creation**

Buffy's heart pumped fiercely in her chest. Her green eyes widened in fear. This was the demon, the demon that made everything normal. It was Andrew! That sneaky little bastard! He had done this to me! Buffy had thought. She struggled and had tried pulling the I.V out of her arm. The nurses had grabbed her arms and held her down. Joyce's eyes widened in fear, why was her daughter so afraid of her? Buffy kicked her legs and shook her body. No! This wasn't real! Where was her sister?! Where was Dawn?! Why was Robin a doctor?! The heart monitor beeped loudly and Robin ran to her bed.

"Buffy what are you doing?!" Robin yelled. "You need to stop right now or you'll give yourself a heart attack!"

Buffy shook her head. "No! Where's Dawn?! Andrew did this to me!" She yelled. "You have to find Andrew!"

Joyce ran to her daughter's bed. "Sweetie, stop please!" She yelled. "What do you mean Dawn? Who is Dawn?" She knew who she was, but she wanted to find out who her daughter had thought who Dawn was.

"You're not real!" Buffy yelled and ripped the mask off. It had hurt a ton, but she hadn't cared. She had wanted to get back to her friends and her family, her real friends and family. "You know who Dawn is! Dawn is my sister!" She yelled and turned to Robin. "Robin! You are a principal, not a doctor! What are you stupid or something?!"

Robin looked at her strangely. "I'm sorry Miss Summers; I think you have me confused with someone else. This is our first time meeting since your accident."

Buffy had stopped struggling and relaxed. The nurses had a tight grip on her still and everyone seemed afraid. What accident? Buffy wondered and she had noticed that the heart monitor returned to normal. She looked at the people in the room that she had known, or at least she thought she had known them. Her mother was dead though and her father had dropped out of their lives with his secretary. Buffy had eyes Robin, Faith, Joyce, and her father. They were all insane. She was never in any accident. Okay, unless you had counted all the times where she almost got killed. I mean, there was the time where she had drowned, when she was cursed by a witch, the time when she worked at the Double Meat Palace, and there were a lot of times. Not to mention the time where she had actually died and her friends had pulled her out of Heaven.

"What accident?" Buffy had asked Robin.

Robin sighed heavily and turned to her parents. "She has a right to know what happened to her."

"What happened?" Buffy asked him and looked at Faith.

"B," Faith had said slowly and with sympathy, which was odd for Buffy. She looked at her hair. Cordelia had made a good note; she highly doubted that was Faith's real hair color. Maybe it may have been blond, it would have explained a lot about her.

Joyce turned to Buffy. "Sweetheart, when we had moved to Sunnydale we had gotten into a car accident." She said. "The car rolled so many times; we were both hurt really bad. I have scars and I was in the hospital for months, but you were…You were hurt worse."

Buffy's eyes widened. "No, no mom…You know I'm The Slayer."

"The Slayer," Joyce asked. "What is a Slayer?" She turned to Robin. "Doctor Wood, what is she talking about?"

"I'm afraid that she has lost her mind, for lack of a better phrase." Robin said and sighed heavily. "I guess Buffy created a whole world to last her for the past seven years."

Buffy was stunned. It was just like that one time, that time when she was attacked by a demon that made her hallucinate. She was going to kill Andrew. It had to be him and his magicks.

"B," Faith said. "It's me your sister." She looked at Buffy with pain in her eyes. This was all bull shit, Buffy had thought. Faith touched the top of Buffy's right hand with her own hand. "Do you remember me?"

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Of course I know who you are Faith. No matter how much you have changed, I still don't like you. Remember? I tried to kill you after you had slept with Angel and then you switched bodies with me and slept with my other boyfriend, Riley. Sure you turned yourself into jail but you broke out and then you and I just destroyed a whole Hellmouth in Sunnydale."

Faith's eyes watered. "I would never do anything like that, B, you're my sister. Please, I have waited so long to talk to you." She was deeply hurt and Buffy could tell. This was all so strange. Why was everyone so worried? Perhaps being a super hero was just a dream. If that were true, what was going to happen to her?

Buffy sighed heavily. "I'm sorry," she said. "I have been asleep for a long time; I need someone to explain to me what is going on in my life." She was going to find a way out of this world and she needed to get out of this hospital to do so. In order for that to happen, she needed to cooperate.

Joyce smiled. "We can help you." She said and looked at Robin. "Can we take her home Dr. Wood?"

Robin shook his head. "Not just yet, I want to keep her here for a whole week and then you can take her home. It is just for observation to make sure that she doesn't faint and that she breathes while she sleeps, but after that I promise you, you can take her home."

Faith squealed and hugged Mr. Summers. "My sister gets to come home with us Dad!" She said happily.

Buffy had grimaced, seeing that was disturbing. Faith was a part of her family. So if Faith was a part of her family, who the hell was Dawn? Why had she made Faith the enemy and Dawn her sister? Buffy had to find out if this world was real or not. If it was, she would give up slaying. Buffy looked at her family and smiled. It was nice to see them together again. The last time that she had seen her parents together was when Andrew, Johnathon, and Warren created that demon and she went into her ideal reality. Well this was not her ideal reality. Buffy wanted to see Dawn again. She wanted to see Giles. She missed her family.

"So what do we do now Dr. Wood?" Buffy asked. It was still funny to see him as a doctor to her, but she had held in the laughter. Faith had looked at her strangely, as had her parents. Buffy hadn't missed them at all. Well, she had missed her mother and her father, in her mind, was having an affair with his secretary. What a cliché, Buffy had thought.

"Well now we let you get back on your feet, metaphorically speaking of course. I'll have the nurses bring you some very basic foods and a glass of water. You have been digesting your food through a feeding tube for the last seven years, your body needs to get used to eating solid foods again." Dr. Wood said. Buffy hated the idea that she had been eating through a feeding tube. She hadn't wanted to know what the hospital had been feeding her for the last seven years. It had made her stomach feel queasy just thinking about it. Still Buffy had nodded and acknowledged what he had told her.

"I can get her some food." Faith said as she stood up. Buffy cringed. Even though the last time Buffy had seen her, Faith she was good, but Buffy still felt uneasy about her.

Her parents looked so happy that she was awake. It was strange that she had her parents were together. Hell this whole thing was strange. Faith was her sister and no one that she had known was real. Well, except for her parents and everyone else. This was all different. This was all a twist. This wasn't reality. This was Andrew's doing and she swore to God that when she had found him, she was really going to give him a real beating. Still, she would play this out for now. Buffy would play along, for now.

"No Faith let the nurses do this." Dr. Wood had said. "There is nothing more you and your family can do." He explained. "You especially should go home and rest."

Joyce looked at Robin. "But when can we take Buffy home?"

"Hank," Robin said and looked at Buffy's father. "You should take your family home. You all need to rest."

Hank looked at Buffy. "Are you going to be okay here for a night alone?" He asked.

Buffy looked at her dad and smiled. "I think I will be fine."

Faith actually looked concerned and walked towards her. She kissed her on the forehead. "We will be back tomorrow." She said. Buffy cringed and faked a happy smile. It was still disturbing that Faith was her actual sister.

Buffy had watched her family exit the room and shortly after that, the nurses had given her some food. It was mostly soft foods. The first course was applesauce sand then around lunch she had jello. Her stomach hadn't felt so good after the jello but she hadn't thrown up. After the un-appetizing jello, the doctors and nurses decided to run a few tests to make sure that she was okay. After a very long and tiring day, Buffy was finally able to get some real sleep. The room was quiet and Dr. Wood had reassured her that there were no more tests that the hospital could do so therefore, she was done for the day. There were faint sounds of other people being awake and walking around but Buffy was able to ignore the sounds. She had fixed her pillows by hitting them a couple of times and then she relaxed. Buffy leaned back in her bed and closed her eyes. She smiled as she went back into her own reality. The one she truly loved.


	4. Chapter 3: Change

Chapter Three: Change

"Buffy," there was a voice that was very familiar. "Buffy!" The voice yelled. Buffy knew that voice; it was her best friend Willow. Oh thank God! None of it was real. That other reality or was it a dream? In that split second, Buffy had decided it was a dream. There was Willow, Dawn, and Xander. Behind her was the bus and in front of her was what was left of Sunnydale. Oh Dawn…Buffy was so happy to see her stubborn-ass sister, Dawn. Willow was standing over her, as was Xander.

"What are we going to do now, Buffy?" Willow asked. "Are you okay?" Buffy had never been so happy to hear that question before. Dear God she was not okay. That alternate reality really confused the hell out of her and even frightened her. Hell, Faith was her sister! That was totally unbelievable, right?! Buffy had wondered.

"Give her some air." Xander had said and both he and Willow backed up. Buffy stood up and embraced Willow. Willow gasped out of surprise and Xander looked at Buffy with a smile. They had won the battle. It was finally, finally over and that deserved a victory hug.

Inside the school bus there were injured people for sure, including Dr.-no, Mr. Wood, the man that Faith was starting to give a chance. Buffy was very happy to be back in the real world. This was her home, this was her life. She felt as though she was The Vampire Slayer again. She had never been so happy about the job that she could never escape from. Now she had Dawn to raise and she wanted Faith to take over for her, at least for a little while. Buffy scanned the heads on the bus to find her sister and she saw Dawn in the very back of the bus. Buffy smiled widely and walked quickly to the back of the bus. She sped her walk up a little to the point where she had knocked over one of the Slayers into a bus seat.

"Ow!" the girl yelled and Buffy ignored her. She was too concerned about getting to Dawn. Buffy finally was able to wrap her arms around her sister.

Dawn gasped, surprised by the humongous hug. She wrapped her arms around her sister. "I'm glad you're alive too Buffy," Dawn said. "I'm glad you made it out."

"Me too," Buffy said. "I'm glad that you're okay too. I mean, are you hurt?"

Dawn shook her head. "I mean I have a few cuts but nothing compared to Robin. He's hurt really bad."

Buffy looked up front and saw Faith anxiously trying to stop Robin's bleeding after he had just scared the crap out of her. Buffy smiled at her. That was the real Faith. Buffy remembered how Faith almost died. Well, okay, she had almost killed her. Buffy had put her in a coma and then a few months later, she came back and then wreaked some more havoc. Buffy hadn't been able to get over what Faith had done to her, hence why she had been so weird around her at the hospital. Buffy was confused again. There was no hospital. It was Andrew-Andrew! Buffy realized that she wanted to talk to him and maybe punch him a few times. Buffy turned to Dawn.

"I love you but I have to go do something right now. Is Andrew still outside with Xander?" She asked her. Dawn nodded and Buffy said, "Good." She opened the back of the bus and jumped a little so her feet landed on her ground. Buffy walked around the bus and spotted Andrew. She narrowed her eyes and tensed up.

"You," Buffy yelled and tackled Andrew to the ground. Andrew screamed like a little girl and Xander grabbed Buffy's arm. "You did this to me! It's another one of your magic tricks!"

"Buffy, Andrew hasn't done anything!" Xander yelled. Andrew's eyes welled up with tears and started to stream down his cheeks. She hadn't even started hitting him yet. Buffy turned to Xander.

"When I was unconscious, he made me believe that none of this was real again!" Buffy yelled at him. "And I want to know how." She turned to Andrew and held her fist up.

"I didn't do anything!" Andrew cried. "I swear it! I put up my evil cloak when I completed my redemption!" He wailed.

Buffy felt dizzy and then all of a sudden the world around her had started to black out. Buffy fell on top of Andrew and woke up in the hospital. She gasped and tried to open her eyes, but nothing was happening. Open your eyes you idiot! Buffy thought and desperately tried to wake up before she was thrown into some other reality again. She hadn't wanted to leave. Buffy should have just ignored what Andrew had done and stayed with Dawn. She had tried to open her eyes one more time. This time she had been successful. The world reappeared only it wasn't what she had exactly wanted. Buffy was in the hospital room again and she was in her bed. She sighed heavily and tears welled up in her eyes. No, I am not going to cry. Buffy thought. Disappointment filled her soul. Was she going to be able to make it through this? Was this always going to happen when she had closed her eyes? Buffy wondered. Was this really the real world? Buffy had wondered.

No, Faith was not her sister, Giles was her Watcher, Dawn was her real sister, and all of them had just defeated the Hellmouth of Sunnydale. She smiled as she closed her eyes just for a moment. You never really know what you're going to get in life. Buffy thought. Buffy had not comprehended this life at all. If this was the real word, what was her past like? Was it the same past that she had known? Buffy had remembered that she had gone to high school in L.A and she was a really popular student at the school. Probably not the brightest, but life was most likely good. Buffy had smiled a little. Perhaps things were finally normal. After all, being The Vampire Slayer was not the best thing in the world. She had died twice and the people that she had loved kept dying; like Tara, her mother, and Spike…They were all gone.

In that other world those people were all gone. Were they here in this world? Buffy knew that her mother was in this world, which had made her extremely happy. The thought of her mother being alive was also direful. She had seen her mother go into the ground in her world; in her mind her mother had been dead for two years. Now the thought of her mother being alive was not a good thought. What if she was a zombie? No, if she were a zombie her mother would have had green and decaying skin. Her skin was healthy and normal so no zombie there.

"Good morning Buffy," a familiar voice said. Buffy turned her head to see Dr. Wood entering her room. Buffy smiled and giggled. "What's so funny?"

"Oh it's just strange to see you in a doctor suit when you were just on a bus-"Buffy stopped in mid-sentence when Dr. Wood had looked at her strangely. "What?" She asked him.

"Buffy you and I have never met each other before yesterday." Dr. Wood told her. Buffy looked down at her hands and frowned. "What's the matter Buffy?"

"I guess I heard your voice when I was asleep?" Buffy had guessed.

Robin had considered it for a moment and nodded. "I guess so; even some psychological doctors believe that coma patients can hear other people when they speak to them." Buffy had nodded in agreement.

"What are those?" Buffy asked Robin. She had looked at the manila folders in his hands and Robin smiled.

"These are your test results. There appears to be nothing wrong with you so you can go home today." Robin said. Buffy was happy but nervous. She was scared all at the same time and there was a terrible knot feeling in her stomach.

What if everything was different? Buffy had wondered. Well things were already different and she was going to see her parents today. Her heart jumped with joy but she kept to herself. She smiled at Robin. "Thank you." She said.

Dr. Wood nodded. "Any time," he said. "We will see next week for a follow up and your sister is coming to get you." Buffy cringed and Dr. Wood noticed it.

"Is there something wrong?" Dr. Wood asked her.

Buffy shook her head. It was clearly a lie but Faith had walked into the room. Dr. Wood turned his attention to Faith. "Good morning Faith," he said. "How are you?"

"Good, I am here to pick up Buffy liked we talked about earlier. Mom and Dad couldn't come because they have work but they wanted me to tell you that they are really sorry they couldn't come but they will be home tonight." Faith said and walked closer to Buffy's bed. "I brought you some clothes. They're probably not your style but you don't have any recent clothes…"

Buffy nodded. "Thank you Faith." She said. It was so strange. Faith was being so nice.

"I will see you next week Buffy and congratulations on going home. It's finally nice to say you need to get out of here in a good way." Dr. Wood said and smiled. Buffy smiled and nodded. She watched Dr. Wood leave the room and looked at Faith with caution.

Buffy gladly took the clothes from Faith and walked to a place where she could change. She was happy to get out of this hospital gown. It smelled terribly. Oh God a shower sounded wonderful, Buffy would have felt like a millionaire if she was just able to take a shower. Buffy smiled as she slipped on some clean clothes. Buffy looked at her clothes once she had put them on. It was a red two inch tank top and a pair of jeans. Great, she had looked like an identical Faith. This was going to be fun, not. Buffy walked out and turned to Faith.

"This isn't really me." She said.

Faith frowned. "I know but mom promised that she would take you shopping on Saturday to get you some new clothes. That's all we have for now." She said.

Buffy felt a leap of joy inside her when Faith had mentioned shopping, especially since she had to buy a whole new wardrobe. What about her life now? Buffy wondered. Oh there were so many things that she had to do and that she wanted to do. Buffy was starting to like this life, but still she had wanted to pound Andrew. Okay, wrong choice of words. She had wanted to hurt Andrew really bad. Then Buffy thought of Dawn. A pinch of sadness hit her heart.

"Do you know where Dawn is?" Buffy asked Faith.

Faith looked confused. "Dawn? There is no Dawn…" She said and paused. It looked as though she was thinking, which Buffy had thought was funny. "Do you mean Dawn Harris?" She asked. Buffy's mouth dropped. No…No…There was no way that Xander Harrison had a daughter. There was just no way.

Faith looked strangely at her. "In L.A you used to babysit Dawn Harris. You became real good friends with the Harrisons." She said.

"Who's her mom?" Buffy asked really fast.

"Oh you know that, it's Willow." Faith said.

Buffy was totally blown away at this madness. Willow and Xander were married and Dawn was there daughter. She had a lot of catching up to do. Her stomach felt sick and her bones ached. "Can we go home now?" She asked. Faith nodded.

"I'll go request a wheelchair for you," Faith said. "No ifs ands or buts." She said and walked out of the room. Buffy was glad to be rid of her. What was Faith's deal? She wondered. Faith hadn't seemed like a badass anymore. Faith was actually helping her and this whole world…It was unbelievable that Xander Harrison and Willow Rosenberg were married. Okay that part was not unbelievable because where Buffy had come from; Willow and Xander had huge crushes on each other in the past. Apparently she hadn't made that all up in her head.

Not too long after Faith had left, she had returned and with a wheelchair just like she had said she was going to get. Buffy sighed and looked at the thing. She felt so…Human. Now she knew how Anya felt when Giles had destroyed her power source. The wheelchair just looked so tacky. There it was with black leather and metal wheels. Buffy took a deep breath and walked to it. She had wanted it to be night fall already. She missed her friends and her life. She felt old and crippled. Buffy had felt…Helpless. Buffy walked to the wheelchair and sat down. How was she getting home? Buffy had wondered. Buffy stared at her hands as Faith took her out of the hospital. She remained quiet and then the sun shone down on her. Buffy looked up and it was so bright. Her eyes stung and her skin tingled.

The sun was different and it had made her cringe. Buffy looked back down at her hands and legs. The sun felt hot on her jeans and it bothered her. She wanted to go home and sit in the air conditioned house. Faith finally brought her up to a car and Buffy was shocked when she had heard the familiar sounds of the unlocked button when the car was able to get into. Buffy looked at Faith.

"You can drive?" Buffy asked.

Faith looked at her and nodded. "Yeah, mom and dad needed another car and a person to do things for them." She said. Buffy sighed and Faith helped her out of the wheelchair and into the car. It was going to be a long ride home. Faith buckled Buffy up and closed the door. She started the car and pulled out of the hospital's parking lot.

Buffy was quiet the entire way home. Buffy looked at the house and smiled. It was that familiar house with the tree on the left in the front yard and the three square glass windows on the door. It was good to be home. Buffy had thought this place had been obliterated with the rest of the town. She was glad that it wasn't. Faith had pulled into the drive way and parked the car. Buffy looked at Faith.

"I think I need to rest. I'm very tired." She said.

Faith nodded. "Of course," She said and turned off the car. She pulled the keys out of the ignition and got out of the car.

It took awhile for the two girls to get into the house. Buffy wasn't feeling well and Faith was trying to be gentle. Once inside the house, Faith helped Buffy up and helped her up the stairs. Buffy had noticed that the house looked the same except Dawn's room was now Buffy's and there were more family pictures on the wall. Of course she wasn't in any of them because according to the doctors, she had been in a coma for the last seven years. Faith had taken Buffy to her room, but Buffy had stopped Faith. The room that used to be Dawn's room was now Faith's room and it was completely different. For one thing, the walls were crimson red. Most of the room was red and black.

She had a queen sized bed and it appeared that she had black sheets and her comforter was a golden comforter. The comforter had black winged skulls on the comforter and there were posters of several bands that Buffy hadn't recognized. So she had concluded the bands that Faith had liked were some heavy metal bands or punk music. Buffy wasn't sure. Buffy frowned as she looked at the room. She had so many plans for Dawn and now all those plans were down the drain.

"Is everything alright?" Faith asked her.

"That was Dawnies' room." Buffy blurted out. She hadn't meant to, the words just slipped out. She wondered what else had changed while she had been asleep. Faith sighed heavily, she had probably hurt Faith's feelings but at the moment, Buffy hadn't cared.

"Let's get you into bed." Faith said and walked Buffy to her room. Buffy looked at her bed and noticed it was the same as in your dreams. Her bedroom had not changed much at all; it was just her life that had changed. Faith pulled back the covers and then helped Buffy into bed. Faith pulled the covers over her sister's body.

"There, all tucked in." Faith said and smiled. It seemed as though Faith was proud of the job she had done. Buffy was too wrapped up in her own world to speak to Faith. She had wanted to remain silent. Faith sighed again. "Well, I will keep your door opened and my door opened, so if you need anything, just holler." She explained. "Are you hungry?" Buffy stared at her hands and nodded. "I'll make you some soup." Faith said and walked out of her room.

Finally, Buffy had thought. Buffy's heart ached as she thought about the final battle in Sunnydale that she had just fought. In her mind, Sunnydale had been destroyed. So all of this was very odd and it made her feel extremely uncomfortable. In her reality, she had gone through so much. Now that she had been awakened, she realized that none of the events that she went through were real. Buffy had technically been through nothing. She felt the tears form in her eyes. Faith was gone and that left Buffy to herself. Buffy let a few tears fall down her cheeks.

What she going to do now? Buffy wondered. She thought she had gone through college but in the real world she had never graduated high school and she had never even been to college. Buffy sighed heavily. What was a person going to do in this situation? Buffy had no clue. She wondered who her friends were and if she had a boyfriend before the accident. Was anything real? So far the people that she knew in her dreams were real in reality. That gave Buffy little comfort. At least she somewhat knew the people in real life. Buffy figured out that she had developed her friends based off of the people that she had known in real life. It made complete sense.

The telephone rang and it had made Buffy jump to high Heaven. Buffy's widened. She was never in Heaven. She wasn't expelled. That meant that she was able to go to live in paradise after she was free of this life. That note had made her feel so much better. Perhaps there were benefits to being awakened after all. There was a small ray of sunshine that made Buffy half smiled. She heard Faith run up the stairs and put on a good face for her sister.

Buffy looked at her door and saw Faith standing in the middle of the threshold with a tray in her hands. There was a bowl and Buffy could see the steam coming from the bowl.

"I brought you a bowl of a soup." Faith said and walked over to Buffy. "I remember that your favorite chicken and stars. Did I get it right?" She asked and walked closely. Buffy nodded.

Faith walked closer and gently put the tray on her bed. Buffy looked at her. "Thank you Faith." She had said. Faith sighed.

"Why do you look at me like that?" Faith asked.

Buffy was taken aback by the question. "What do you mean?" She asked even though she knew what Faith was clearly talking about.

"I mean that look," Faith said. "You look at me like you're worried that I might snap or something," She explained. "I mean you give me a look of disgust."

Buffy sighed. It was hard to describe. She had tried to keep her feelings about Faith hidden but apparently she had figured her out. "It's not your fault." Buffy had said. "You've been nice to me really, nice."

"Don't you remember me?" Faith asked. Buffy turned to her. She looked at her eyes and Faith looked really hurt. For once in her life, Buffy had thought that she had seen humanity in Faith's eyes. That made it all that much harder to tell Faith what had really happened her in her mind. So Buffy had decided to lie.

"Of course I remember you." Buffy told her. She had remembered her, just not in the way that Faith had hoped.


	5. Chapter 4: And The Change Continues

**Chapter Four: And the Change Continues**

Faith sighed heavily. "Then why do you look at me like I am a monster?" She asked her. "Look I stopped drinking alcohol a long time ago." She said and her voice was covered in hysteria. "I am not that person anymore B, I missed you. I swear I have changed."

"Faith, just leave me alone okay?" Buffy asked. "I can tell that you are trying to make things better for me but you're not. I did not expect you to be here. I expected Dawn…" Buffy blurted out. That wasn't supposed to come out. Buffy was shocked at herself and she had seen Faith's eyes water with sadness. She had looked so hurt that Buffy felt terrible.

"What were you dreaming about?" Faith asked her as she swallowed the tears.

Buffy turned her head to the side. "Believe me, you don't want to know."

"You still hate me that much huh?" Faith asked her. "Damn, after seven years I thought you would have forgiven me by now but apparently, I am still your number one enemy." She scoffed and turned her head. "It's nice to see you again too B." She said and stood up. Buffy watched Faith leave the room. Buffy hadn't felt this dead since her friends had resurrected her. If only Spike were here, even in a dream Buffy had still wanted him by her side.

Buffy was able to hear Faith sobbing from her room. It was so odd to hear that woman cry. Buffy had never heard her cry, never even seen her cry. She had tried to kill her once to save the love of her life. Now more than ever, Buffy had wished her dead. Buffy had wished this world were dead. She wasn't The Vampire Slayer anymore so she hadn't had to care about the world anymore. The world wasn't on her shoulders. Buffy was able to hate it if she had wanted to and Buffy Summers hated the world at that moment. She knew she wasn't going to hate the world forever; it was just that second that she hated it. Everything here was different and confusing. Buffy was terribly confused.

The world seemed so real four years ago. Buffy was so sure of everything. She was in college and she had her whole life in front of her. Then Dawn came into play. Buffy hadn't hated Dawn. She loved her and missed her terribly. No matter how much she had annoyed her, she loved her. Buffy had wanted Dawn back inside this house. She leaned back in her bed, against her pillows and sighed heavily. She wanted to go back to the dream. At least there things were clear. At least there she knew what to do. Buffy had closed her eyes and had tried to fall asleep. She had tried many times but no matter how much she tried, Buffy was not able to fall asleep. She turned to her soup on the bed. Suddenly, it had looked appetizing. Buffy pulled the tray on top of her lap and looked at it. The broth was yellow and the stars seemed to stare back at her.

"What do you want?" Buffy had snapped and picked up her spoon. She drove the spoon into the broth and scooped the chicken and the stars. She put the food in her mouth and swallowed. It was good and it went down easily, much better than that jello at the hospital.

Buffy finished the soup with no problem which had made her happy. She wondered when her mom and dad would be home. It was so strange to see them together after seven years of them not being together. It was a relief though to see them together and good. Most of this life was good, Buffy just wasn't sure if she was going to be able take one more shocker. She pushed the tray to the other side of the bed and slumped down. She was getting comfy and ready for sleep. Now she was exhausted. This day had been a long one and it was only the middle of the afternoon. Buffy yawned heavily and ignored Faith's sobbing. She was too tired and in her mind, Faith was nothing but a reformed psychopath. That was definitely not a sister in any way shape or form.

Buffy closed her eyes and dove into the sleep land. Finally, she was able to get some rest. Buffy opened her eyes and found herself in her imaginary world. It was nice except she was in some motel that she had no idea where. She sat up in her bed and looked to the right of her. Dawn was sound asleep in the bed next to her. Her heart leapt for joy. She ran over to Dawn, not even thinking that she was going to wake her sister up. Buffy hugged her tightly.

"Oh Dawn," Buffy said and Dawn gasped.

"I can't breathe Buffy." Dawn told her.

"Oops, I'm sorry." Buffy said and let go of her. Dawn coughed and she sat up.

"What's wrong?" Dawn asked her.

Buffy looked at her sister and smiled say. "Dawn, you know I love you right?" She asked her. "And that I will never abandon you, right?"

Dawn nodded and looked at her, trying to figure her out. "Why are you talking like this?" She asked.

"If I go away, I mean, really go away just know that I will always be with you." Buffy told her. She looked at Dawn with a sappy smile. Buffy brushed a strand of Dawn's hair.

"You're scaring me." Dawn said.

"Don't be scared." Buffy had told her. "If I ever leave you, know that I will always love you." She said. "I will always be by your side, okay Dawn?"

Dawn nodded and Buffy kissed her forehead. "Good, now go back to sleep." She said and watched Dawn lay back in bed. She looked so tired. Buffy watched Dawn fall back asleep without even tossing and turning even once.

For a few moments, Buffy had watched Dawn sleep. Her sister looked so peaceful. She was glad that she had made it out the battle alive. Buffy thought of her friends and Giles. She had wanted to see them before she had awakened again. She needed to speak to Giles and tell him what was going on. This was not Andrew's doing, she knew that now. It had to be something else. Buffy had decided that she was going to see Willow next. For some odd reason she knew which room her best friend had been sleeping in. She was probably with Kennedy, but she hadn't cared right now. She had wanted to say good bye to everyone, at least to the people that were closest to her. She paused in her mind for a moment and thought of how selfish that was. Had that made her a bitch? There was no time to reflect now. Buffy had needed to move.

Buffy walked out of her room and gently closed the door behind her. She knew it had been late at night and she knew that the gang had been exhausted. As for the other slayers, she hadn't needed to explain herself to them. This was their time to take over. It was Faith's time to take over. Buffy's heart stopped for just a millisecond when she had remembered the real Faith. The real Faith in her mind, anyway. She was never going to look at her the same way again after she had found out that Faith was her real sister. Poor Dawn, perhaps she wasn't real in her world after all. At least not in any way shape or form that Buffy had remembered her as. In this world she was not real and in the world that she had woken up in, Dawn was Xander's daughter. Buffy had shuddered at that thought. In this world, Dawn had a huge crush on Xander when she was a little kid.

This was all too strange for her. Buffy had decided to push her side thoughts away and left her room. She gently shut the door behind her and walked down the hall. The motel was a pretty crappy one at that but Buffy had realized that all of this was just something she had made up in her mind. She was no hero. She had no powers. Buffy was just some coma patient back in reality but in here, she was The Vampire Slayer. Buffy thought about things like that as she had walked down the hallway and finally came across Willow's door. She knocked on the door a little hard just to make sure that either Willow or Kennedy had heard her. Buffy was relieved when she had seen the door before her move and the blackness seeped out from Willow's room, implying that the two love birds had been asleep.

It was Willow who had answered the door. She was wearing a silk night gown robe and she looked at Buffy strangely. "Is everything okay?" She asked.

Buffy's eyes watered and she shook her head. "Will, I need to talk to you. " She had said and Willow only watched Buffy with concern. Willow had closed the door behind her and moved closer to Buffy.

"Buffy, what is it?" Willow asked. Buffy had sighed. She was exhausted in this world. She was wounded and grimy but she had needed to speak to her best friend.

"Will, there may not be enough time left." She had said with an urgent voice. "But I need you to tell Xander that I love him and he was a wonderful friend. I don't have much time to talk to anyone else except Giles." Buffy had explained and Willow had opened her mouth to speak, but Buffy shushed her. "I don't have time for arguments Willow, just hear me out. I need you to take care of Dawn when I'm gone. I have a feeling that I won't be able to come back here much longer and I need you to know that I love you. I already said good bye to Dawn. I know none of this makes sense, but I just you need you to do this for me, okay?" She had asked and Willow nodded.

Buffy had quickly remembered that Willow had never pulled her out of Heaven and she needed her best friend to know that. "Will, where I am, I mean where I go, you never pulled me out of Heaven. That had never happened and I need you to know that." She said. If she known she was going to talk this much she probably should have brought some water. "I want you to know that I forgive you and I need Xander to know that I forgive him. Can you give him that message for me?" Buffy had asked her. Willow had nodded and tears were streaming down her cheeks. This had hurt her so much but Buffy had needed Willow to know that she was innocent. "I love you Willow." Buffy had said and hugged her tightly.

Buffy left quickly and ran down the hall to Giles' room. She had wanted to see him so badly. She had known that he was probably badly hurt from the bus accident but she had needed to see him and give him a message that was similar to Willow's. Buffy knocked loudly on Giles' door. It had taken a few minutes for the door to open but as long as she was able to say good bye to him, Buffy was able to be patient. She smiled at Giles. He looked like Hell for a proper man.

"Giles, can we speak in private?" Buffy had asked him before he was able to speak.

Giles nodded and opened the door widely for Buffy to walk through. Once Buffy was in the room, Giles had closed the door behind them. "What is the matter Buffy?" He asked.

Buffy paced back and forth and then finally turned to Giles. "Listen Giles, I woke up in a hospital in Sunnydale. None of this is real but I need you to know that I love you. I don't have much time-"

The world had started to fade and Buffy was scared. Her heart beat loudly in her chest. No! There wasn't enough time! She had wasted too much time with Willow and Dawn.

"I love you Giles!" Buffy had yelled before she had opened her eyes. She was back in her room and she gasped from the whiplash.

Her mother had was staring at her and looking concerned. Buffy had gotten really tired of that look. She sighed heavily. "I'm fine." She said with an attitude.

Buffy's mother was taken aback. "Buffy, sweetheart we have missed you." She told her. "Why are you acting like this? I talked to Faith and she's terrible. What did you say?"

Buffy sighed. She actually hadn't remembered what she had told Faith. All she knew was that it wasn't good and it wasn't kind. "I'm sorry mom," she said and her face softened. Buffy was truly sorry. She had no reason to act the way that she had been. "It's just in my dream, Faith had done so many wrong things to me I can't look at her the same way." Buffy had paused. "She wasn't my sister in my dream. She was my enemy and Dawn Harrison was my sister."

Joyce's eyes widened and she walked to Buffy's door. She closed the door and pulled the seat from Buffy's desk and sat by her side. "Buffy, tell me everything." She said.

Buffy shook her head. "I can't." She said. It was too painful for her to talk about. She had missed everyone so much. "No I really can't. The people that I loved are gone. You have been dead for at least two years." She said and Joyce's eyes watered.

"Buffy this madness has to stop." Joyce said. "You were in a coma."

"Don't you think I'm trying?!" Buffy cried and buried her face in her hands. "I just said good bye to Dawnie, Willow, and I tried to say good bye to Giles but you woke me up!" She was so upset and so furious with everyone.

"Willow?" Joyce asked. "You haven't seen her in years. You used to babysit for her and Xander."

"They were my best friends!" Buffy cried, no one understood.

Joyce sighed heavily. "Buffy, please, do not yell at me." She said. "They were not you friends. You made them up from people that you once knew in real life." Joyce explained.

Buffy sniffled and looked at her mother. "It is so nice to see you." She said and wiped the snot from her face. Joyce looked at her and smiled.

"It is nice to see you too." Joyce told her. "Do you need any help?" She asked.

Buffy shook her head. "No thank you mom." She told her. "I think I need some rest now." She sounded completely out of her mind.

Joyce looked at with concern and Buffy had hated that look but she had ignored it. Joyce nodded. "I'll be back in an hour to check on you and I'll bring you some food." She said and put Buffy's chair back. Joyce walked around Buffy's bed and picked up her tray of food. Buffy smiled at her.

"Thanks mom." Buffy told her.

Joyce nodded and walked out of Buffy's room and closed the door behind her. Buffy sighed heavily and clutched her chest where her heart was. She had missed everyone. Buffy felt as though this world was unfulfilling and she was barely in this world for a whole week. Buffy leaned back in her bed. She looked around her room and saw pictures on the walls. The photographs contained of people that she knew. Buffy squinted and had seen a picture of Oz and herself with Cordelia. Buffy was surprised. They were all so young. Why was she with Oz? Buffy had wondered. This was all so strange. Buffy had just wanted to go back to her world. She had missed her world.

There was Willow, Dawnie, Xander, and Giles. There was no one here. Buffy felt like this world was all a lie. Would she ever be the same again? Buffy wondered. What if all that time, she really was in a coma and none of that was real? That feeling was starting to sink into her heart. Buffy's eyes watered and she cried. She hadn't felt this sad since her mother had died. Everything that she had ever known was different. Everything that she had loved wasn't real, at least for the most part. Buffy had cried herself to sleep. It was so unreal. If she were The Vampire Slayer, she would have never cried in her world. Not unless it was something too traumatizing like when her mother had died or when she had lost Dawn for a few days and slipped into a coma. In this world, she felt like a normal girl and Buffy wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.


	6. Chapter 5: Keeps Getting Weirder

**Chapter Five: And it just keeps Getting Weirder**

Buffy had had that dream again. Dawn, Faith, Robin, Spike, Giles, Willow, Andrew, Xander, Anya, and the potentials that had turned into Slayers at last minute for the big battle were fighting for mankind at the mouth of Hell. Buffy had felt bad for Xander. He had lost Anya during the battle just like she had lost Spike. Thankfully she hadn't lost Dawn. Buffy was coming to consciousness and yawned. She had stirred in her bed and stretched immensely. Her bones ached from being in that bed for so long. Buffy had needed to move. She had opened her eyes and realized that the battle never happened again. Each time that she had woken up back in that house Buffy's real world sunk in just a little bit more.

Buffy had decided to ignore that she had dreamt about a lie and swung her covers off of her body. The comforter was too thick at the moment for her to breathe. It was too hot. Buffy looked at her clock and saw that it was only six in the morning. My God that was so early! Well he body had done a lot of resting for the past day. Buffy carefully placed her feet onto her white carpeted floor. It felt nice and clean beneath her toes, as if her mother had just vacuumed it the night before she had come home from the hospital. Buffy loved the feel of the carpet between her toes. She yawned and she felt the need to stretch again which had made her fall backwards back onto her bed. Buffy groaned and rubbed her eyes for clearer vision. She hadn't wanted to ask for help. No, she refused to ask for help. It was too embarrassing.

Buffy now knew how the elderly felt. She had hoped that she had never ended up as one of those people that needed help doing absolutely everything. Buffy stretched and some of her bones had made a snapping sound. Buffy had winced and sighed heavily. This was going to be a long day and it had barely just started. Buffy walked to the door slowly and managed to walk over there without falling which had made her feel confident. She wrapped her hand around the wooden doorknob and opened the door. This walk had taken a lot of her, but she had continued forward.

The journey to the bathroom was not that bad. It was getting into the shower that had made things extremely difficult. The shower flooring was slippery and hard to gain balance after years of sleep plus another day of rest but Buffy had eventually managed it. She pressed her palms against the wall where the shower knobs were and let the warm, relaxing water hit her skin. The water felt like tiny pinches at first but then her body grew used to the warmth. The shower felt amazing on her body to the point that she had stayed in the water for about an hour before she had begun to finally wash the grime off her tannish-pinkish skin. Buffy was surprised she hadn't heard her parents get up yet. It was early in the morning, weren't they morning people? Buffy had wondered. She shrugged in thought and pushed the thoughts in her head aside.

Buffy finished with the shower and from having to stand a long time, Buffy was finally getting some feeling back into her system. She had felt better and less queasy. Buffy wrapped her body in a towel and wrapped her hair in one as well. Buffy looked in the mirror and realized that she hadn't turned on the lights yet to the bathroom that was above the sink. She looked at the lightless bulb and shrugged. I guess I got used to the darkness while I had been asleep. Buffy thought and a memory flew by her. Spike had wanted her to join him in the darkness once, but that was before he had gotten his soul. Buffy closed her eyes tightly. She was disappointed in herself for remembering. That world wasn't real, this one was. A knock at the door had made her jump out of her skin. Goosebumps lingered on her body from fright and she walked to the door. Buffy had opened the door a slight crack and saw Faith in front of her. That was still hard to get used to. Faith was actually her sister. Buffy had shrugged the awkward feeling off and looked at her, in the eyes actually.

"I'm sorry," she had said without meaning it. "Do you need to use the bathroom?"

Faith had nodded. She looked terrible. Her dark make up was smeared all over her eyes and her hair looked like she had sex in all different directions. Then Buffy had wondered if her so called sister had had sex in this reality. Had Buffy ever had sex? Wow, she had just thought of herself in the third person. Buffy shook her head and then looked at Faith.

"I'm sorry," she said. "Here I'm done with it." Buffy told Faith and got her things out of the bathroom. Faith watched Buffy leave the bathroom and go back into her room.

Buffy sighed heavily and walked into her room. It was still hard to see Faith in her house. Buffy hadn't wanted to see Faith at all. She had tried to steal Angel from her, she switched bodies with her, and she had slept with Riley while she was in her body. Buffy had walked to her bed and sat down. She hadn't wanted to see Faith at all and here she was, living in her house and it was her house. Faith had no right being here. Buffy had stopped herself right there. She had realized she was starting to sound like a psycho. She shook her head, which had made her towel fall off and her wet hair unraveled. Buffy had to accept Faith sooner rather than later. If she had not, Buffy had realized that it was not going to be good for her mental state and she had needed her mental state to be in tact right now especially, with all this change. Buffy looked around her room and frowned. It had looked like the road to sanity was going to be long and trying and she was not looking forward to it.

The telephone rang and Buffy wondered who had to be calling this early. She turned to her side and found her clock on the end table to the right of her. Her eyes widened when she had discovered that it was nearly eight o' clock. Damn, she had taken a long shower. Buffy got up off her bed and walked to her dresser. She half smiled at the thought that she was getting better at walking already. It had appeared that her mind wasn't completely crazy. The slayer-strength idea had not been completely a lie, which had made her feel better about being in her new found skin. Buffy opened her drawers and found a few jeans and some t-shirts which were most likely Faith's hand me downs. Buffy pulled out one pair of jeans and a t-shirt. She looked at the other drawers and found some appealing under-clothing. Buffy had gotten dressed for the day and she felt as though that was a big accomplishment considering everything that had happened.

It wasn't the fact that Buffy hadn't cared about her appearance, because she had cared. It was just that she wasn't ready to face this new word and she hadn't really given a hoot that really saw her right now. Buffy was too upset to really see anyone right now. She just wanted to get her life back in order and figure out what she was going to do now. Originally, Buffy had planned Dawn's life and was going to take action right away, but now with that option completely gone, she had her life to focus on. Buffy was able to go to college and earn an actual life in the real world. Buffy had wondered what she was going to do. She could be a lawyer, an artist, or a teacher. Buffy smiled and then that smile had vanished. She hadn't known how to do any of those things. A knock at her bedroom door had snapped her out of her life thoughts and she walked to the door. Buffy had opened the door to see her mother. She smiled. It was nice to see someone she hadn't disliked.

"Hi mom, did I wake you?" Buffy had asked her.

Joyce smiled and shook her head. "No, the telephone did. Oz had called. He would like to know if he can come over and see you." She said which had surprised Buffy.

"Oz," Buffy asked with a clueless expression. "Why does he care?" She hadn't meant to sound so rude it was just a huge surprise to her.

Joyce had also looked surprise. "Oz was your boyfriend in L.A, dear." She told her.

Buffy's mouth dropped. "No way," she had said a little too loudly. Her voice and actions had made her mother jump. "I'm sorry mom, it's just, in my dream Oz was someone else's boyfriend." She had confessed. Honestly Oz was not attractive to Buffy. For starters, he was too short for her taste. Sure he had cool hair and he was a good person (right up until the point when he had cheated on Willow), it's just she wasn't able to wrap her mind around the fact that she had dated him or was even still dating him. Buffy had looked at her mother as she had sighed.

"Is he still able to come and see you, Buffy?" Joyce asked. "He and Cordelia are the few people besides your sister and us that had checked on you. You at least owe him one visit."

Owe him? Buffy had wondered. She felt like she had owed no one anything and especially, Faith. Buffy noticed her mother's expression. It would have meant a lot to her.

"Alright," Buffy had told her. "I guess one visit isn't going to hurt anyone." She smiled. So long as she hadn't added Cordelia to that visit, Buffy hadn't cared.


	7. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five Continued: The Visit**

After Faith was done with the bathroom, Buffy had dried her hair and put on her face for the day. Later this evening she was going to see Oz. This was going to be so awkward. Buffy was half nervous and half irritated. Who would have waited for a girlfriend who was in a coma? Buffy knew that Angel would have but that was because Angel was a whole other type of guy all together. For one, he was sweet, and two he had a gentle nature about him that was seduced by darkness. For some odd reason, Buffy loved him for that. She loved the fact that Angel was a great guy but she had hated it that the two of them had the most forbidden love of all time and that he had fallen in love with Cordelia. It had baffled her that it was able to work between Angel and Cordelia and not herself and Angel. That information had left her heart cold and she wasn't ready to date anyone else. She had tried to move on in college only to get screwed over with Parker and that was literally.

Then she had tried to move on with Riley and apparently she had been so wrapped up in her own world that she had pushed him aside so he had left her. Buffy had tried to stop him from leaving but she had arrived too late. Then she had tried to move on with Spike and that…Well that hadn't ended so well. She had gotten him killed. She gave him a necklace that he wore like a champion and saved the world from unspeakable evil. With all of that that had happened in her life or in her dream (whichever way one wants to look at it), Buffy had concluded that she was done dating. At least until she had gotten her head screwed back on the right way. Right now, this life was too confusing for her to add onto the plate. It would be like adding green beans to a slice of apple pie for Buffy and those two combinations just hadn't worked. So why add the pressure?

Buffy had made her body presentable for the day and when she was satisfied with her look, she had looked at herself in the mirror. She wore her hair in a messy bun and wore some of Faith's old clothes. Faith's style was not Buffy's in any way shape or form, but since she was in a coma all of her life, her old clothes were way too small for her to wear. So Buffy was stuck in Faith's clothes which had only irritated her even more. Still, clothes aside, Buffy had felt as though she had done a great job getting ready. It wasn't that she had wanted to make an impression for Oz; it was just that she had wanted to prove to her family that she was able to take care of herself and if her family was going to try and control her life this was going to be the first step to stop that right now.

Buffy was not trying to be a bitch she had just wanted to take her life back. She was so used to taking care of everyone else that she had forgotten what it was like to take care of her. This time around, it was all about her and Buffy was not going to let anyone take that from her. She was going to make her own decisions and she was going to take charge. Buffy had wanted to make her own decisions. She was not going to let Destiny interfere with her life anymore and if that meant telling Oz that she had needed personal space then she was going to him that. She had understood it was going to be difficult for him to hear, but he had needed to hear it (in her opinion anyway). Buffy wasn't even sure if she was able to look at Oz the same way after what he had done to her best friend Willow. Buffy had thought about that situation again and suddenly she grew very nervous. What if Oz wasn't the same person that she had known in her dreams?

Buffy sighed heavily. Her brain hurt and all of this was making it even worse. Buffy had just wished that this day was over. Now she had wished that her entire life was over. This was going to be a really long, new life. It was going to be hard and it was going to be heartbreaking but in the long run…It was going to be worth it. Buffy was excited at the thought that she was going to be someone. She had wanted this, this normal life but when it had actually come down to it, Buffy was terrified. Buffy held herself in her arms. She had wanted to curl up in a ball and hide, but that wasn't Buffy's style. Buffy had been a fighter for years, but then again that had never happened. So who was she? Who was Buffy Summers? Buffy was now confused.

Buffy looked around the room and sighed. When was Oz getting here? Buffy had needed space and she had needed to figure out her life and who she was. Buffy hadn't wanted to hurt anyone, especially when she knew it was not that someone's fault. Buffy sighed heavily. Life was too complicated already. Buffy had wished that she was thrown back into that coma. She wasn't sure if she was able to do this, any of this. This was like the beginning of college all over again except she hadn't had the gang or Xander backing her up! Buffy felt dizzy and she grabbed her forehead. No. She had to calm down. She had to calm down right now.

Buffy had taken a deep breath and sat down on her bed. It was nice to be alone. Buffy leaned back on her bed and closed her eyes. She wondered how Dawn and the others were doing. She had wanted to have the dream again. Buffy had missed her sister and her family. She had wanted to pass the time without really being there. She dreamt of the people she had loved. Their faces slowly popped into her mind and the world formed around her. The gang was still at the motel. The Scooby gang was in an area of the motel for breakfast items which was surely going to be a catastrophe. Dawn was able to eat anything without a problem but for someone like Giles and some of the other Potentials who were now Slayers it was probably not going to be a good idea. Then Buffy had wondered if the Asian who was Lactose in tolerant had lived and was still around. If she had lived, she should probably stay away from the eggs, cereal, and pretty much everything else.

Buffy had thought of herself in the girl's shoes. She wasn't sure if she was able to tolerate being Lactose in tolerant. There was so much good food in the world to not want to try everything. Buffy had sighed and then realized who had been sitting with her at the table. Giles was at the head of the table with Xander who had sat at the right of Giles'. Xander had looked terribly upset and Buffy had concluded that he was still grieving from the loss of Anya. He wasn't crying but his one good eye had said it all and had given him away. Buffy had pitied Xander. Xander and Anya were so close and for the longest time, Buffy had thought that Anya and Xander's love was the greatest love of all time. The two had shared a beautiful love and then something terrible had happened. Thoughts had gotten thrown around and Xander had gotten cold feet. No one had blamed him at all. Well, that's a lie. Anya had blamed him. She had made Xander feel as though he were a terrible person.

Xander felt as though what he had done was right and Anya had not understood what he had meant. She was too hurt. It had hurt Buffy's heart at the time whenever she had thought of her. Buffy had been pretty sure that is what everyone felt as well. Willow had been the one to have admitted it first. Buffy sighed and was worried for Xander as she had thought about the past. Buffy now had a better understanding of things. She felt as though she knew how Xander as felt. Buffy had decided to keep her thoughts to herself and let him mourn. Xander lifted his head and looked at everyone.

"I mean what did Buffy mean when she was going?" He had asked to finally break the silence. "She's acting like that love-bot that Spike had ordered two years ago."

Buffy was stunned. She was acting like a robot? Of course! It had to be because her soul could only be in one dimension at one time. Therefore when she had left this dimension, her body was like an empty shell. She must have appeared insane. Buffy had laughed which had caused everyone to look at her. Kennedy was on Xander's left with her hands wrapped around her Willow's arms and Dawn had been sitting next to Buffy this whole entire time. Dawn! Buffy had thought with relief and hugged her sister tightly to the point where she had made her sister choke.

"Buffy! Buffy, what's wrong with you?!" Dawn gasped and searched for air.

Buffy had realized that she had hurt her sister and let go. "I'm sorry Dawn!" She told her. "I just missed you all so much!"

Giles looked at Buffy with wonder and concern. That look was getting tiresome. "Buffy are you alright?" He had asked. Buffy had to admit, she had missed his accent. Buffy looked around the table and saw Xander, Dawn, Willow, Giles, and Kennedy all looking very strange at her.

She had wondered what it was like to watch an empty shell walk around the earth. It must have been very odd but funny the same time. Buffy turned to Dawn and her eyes had watered. She couldn't help herself. She had missed Dawn so much that it had pained her to be happy right now. "Oh Dawnie," Buffy had said. "I want to come home. I miss you." She said and then turned around and looked at her family. "I miss all of you. There has to be a way to keep me here, on this plane." Buffy was taken aback by her own words. Now she had felt as though she knew what magic had been all about. Willow had looked her next.

"What do you mean by: 'this plane'?" Willow had asked.

Buffy looked down. "I'm in some other reality. It must be why Xander thinks that I'm acting like a robot." She had told Willow.

"It's not just Xander that thinks that Buffy." Dawn said and brought Buffy's chin up with her index finger. "It's all of us; we all think that you're not yourself." She had said with water in her eyes.

Buffy had sighed heavily. She was so tired of that look! Buffy looked at everyone. "Will you all just stop giving me that look, please?" Buffy had yelled. The gang was taken aback by her attitude and remained silent. Buffy had sighed again. "I'm sorry you guys, it's just I have been seeing two looks lately: like everyone is afraid for me or that everyone feels sorry for me and I am tired of it. I can't take it anymore! I am not a child!"

Xander rolled his eye. "Buffy, we think that you are acting like a robot because you're grieving. You miss Spike." He had said which had surprised her. That was an outrageous idea!

Yes she had missed Spike, but she had missed everyone! Buffy was furious. She had felt like her dreams had turned against her. Then she was surprised at herself. She had just admitted that these people weren't real. The world had started to fade away and had made Buffy panic. "No! Don't leave me!" She had yelled but the world still turned to black. Buffy had awoken with her mother standing next to her bedside. Buffy rolled her eyes. Joyce frowned at her behavior.

"Oz is here." Joyce had announced.

Buffy nodded and sat up. She was a bit dizzy from the emotional trauma, but she was able to stand up and move her own body. Buffy walked out of her room and down the stairs with her mother. She had entered the dining room and saw Oz standing next to the table. Buffy had given him the best smile that she was able to manage and he had smiled back at her.

"Hey Buffy," he had said.

"Hey." Buffy had said. She wasn't able to manage anything else.

Dinner was rather silent and awkward. The meal consisted of meat loaf, green beans, and mashed potatoes. There was also applesauce. No one had really said anything, which Buffy had been grateful for. Everyone seemed to have enjoyed the meal because no one had talked. After dinner was a whole different story. Joyce and Buffy's father had walked upstairs, leaving Buffy to Oz all alone. The two of them had sat in the living room while Faith had cleaned up after the meal. She was surprised that Faith hadn't argued at all with their mom. She had just went and done it. At least Faith isn't such a bitch in this reality. Buffy had thought. Finally, Buffy had broken the silence.

"I wanted to thank you," Buffy had said and Oz had looked up. "For watching over me while I was in the hospital."

Oz had smiled just a little. "It was no problem. You were my girlfriend." He had said.

Buffy was partially happy when he had said the words: 'You were my girlfriend.' Had that meant he knew that they weren't getting back together? Buffy had hoped so. It would have made things so much easier to talk about.

"Oh so you know then." Buffy had said.

"I know what?" Oz had asked her.

"You know that I don't want to date right now." Buffy had told him flat out. She thought that Oz was a grownup and the type of person that could handle the obvious truth.

Oz put his head down and then looked back at Buffy. "Yes I know you don't want to date right now. I wasn't expecting you and I to get back together right away. The doctors told me from the very beginning that you might not remember me. So I'm prepared for us to never happen again."

Buffy had given Oz a sad half smile. She was glad that he was prepared for that answer. She had nodded. "Oz, I do remember you but not in the way that you think. When I was asleep, I had weird dreams about you that I am almost positive you don't want to know about." She told him and paused. "The doctors were right about one thing. I don't really remember anything about what happened before I came to Sunnydale. I don't really know anyone; I only know them from people that I dreamed about. My knowing of you," Buffy paused again. "Is not the you sitting right in front of me now."

Oz sighed heavily. It appeared as though Buffy's words seemed have had hit a nerve. Buffy watched him carefully. She was nervous. What if he really was a werewolf? Had they slept together in high school? Buffy's eyes had widened in shock and panic. They could have slept together! Buffy had looked at Oz.

"Hey Oz," Buffy had said. "Did we…Did we ever sleep together in high school?" She had asked him. Oz looked up at her and shook his head 'no'.

"No," Oz had said. "We hadn't slept together. You weren't ready and I understood." He told her. Buffy had sighed with relief.

"So I guess that's it then?" Buffy had asked him. Oz stood up and nodded.

"Yeah," he had said. "I should bail and let you get your life together."

Buffy had smiled. "I'll walk you out." She had told him and escorted him politely to the door. "Thank you for understanding and not getting mad at me."

Oz turned to Buffy with his back to the front door. "No problem." He said and smiled. "Who knows, if you remember me the way I was, maybe we can try it again."

Buffy smiled widely. "I would like that." She had told him.

Oz smiled and opened the front door. "We'll keep in touch?" He asked. "Your mom has my new cell phone number the other number was my parents."

Oz has parents? Buffy had wondered. She had never known that Oz had parents in the other reality. He was always so quiet. Buffy had smiled at Oz and nodded. "You can count on it." She had told him. Now Buffy had knew why Willow had fallen in love with him and why she was so crushed when he had left…Oz was really a good guy. She watched him smile at her and leave the house. That wasn't a horrible visit at all, Buffy had thought to herself and watch Oz leave in his blue van. Well, her mind had almost remembered him in this reality. She had gotten his car right and the fact that he was a silent person but a nice guy. Buffy was excited about what her new life would give her in the end because this was the first step.


	8. Chapter 6: Surprise!

Chapter Six: Surprise!

Buffy was tired after Oz had left and so she had walked upstairs, into her room. It had been a long evening and she had needed some rest. The one thing about being in a coma, it had drained the life from a person. Now Buffy had known how Faith had felt when she had woken up. Buffy stretched and yawned. The sun was just about to set outside her window. The window had been slightly cracked opened and the curtains swayed slightly with the breeze. The breeze was warm, just like everything else in California. Buffy looked at her bed and smiled. It was as if it were welcoming her into its "arms". Buffy walked to her dresser and pulled out a nightgown. It was a white, silk one that had fit her perfectly. She had recognized it almost immediately. This was one of her nightgowns that she had bought in L.A before she had moved to Sunnydale. Buffy was surprised that the nightgown had still fit her. After she was satisfied how the nightgown fit her body, she closed her drawer and her bedroom door.

Buffy walked on her bare feet to her bed and moved the covers over to the side. She crawled into bed and snuggled with her comforter. Buffy was happy that she was home and not in some motel. She was glad that her family was together (except for the fact that Faith was her sister, she had still missed Dawnie terribly) and she was glad that she was in her bed. Buffy closed her eyes and began to mourn the loss of her friends and her family. Tears welled up in her eyes and she sniffled. Her nose had tingled, the kind of tingle sensation that one had gotten when someone had gotten those hiccup tears. Buffy wasn't going to get to that point, but her heart had ached and her chest had burned just ever so slightly. Buffy turned her head on her pillow and fell asleep. However, she was not having the dream of her friends and family. She had a dream about the park.

She had sat on a swing and she had worn a green, summer dress. Buffy looked up at the sky. It was a clear, summer blue sky and it was the kind of skies that she had loved. The wind smelled of lilacs and roses, which were all around her. Buffy breathed in the wonderful smell of summer and her skin crawled with goosebumps. Someone that she had known was near. Buffy turned her head and saw a tall, handsome man. A huge smile grew on her face. It was Angel! Buffy's heart beat sped up quickly. Butterflies flew in her stomach and she felt as though she were on a ride at Disneyland or something like that. Buffy stood up quickly and straightened her dress her out with her hands.

"Angel." Buffy had said with wonder in her voice.

Angel had walked closer to her and smiled. "Hello Buffy." He said. Buffy walked quickly around the swing that she had sat in and hugged him tightly.

Angel chuckled the way he had when Buffy had known him. She had loved his voice, the way he had moved, and the way he had laughed. She hadn't cared that he had been a vampire. Okay that was a lie. At first she had cared when he had kissed and she had cared when he had lost his soul, but underneath all of that he was the love of her life. No matter how much of a monster he had been in the past or when he had lost his soul. Buffy had still loved him. He was her safe place, the place her heart could go to. Buffy had thought about this day and…Wait! The day! Angel was standing in sunlight! Buffy had started to panic. Her eyes widened and she pushed Angel into the nearest shadow that she was able to find.

"Angel! The sunlight! You can't be here, you shouldn't be here!" Buffy had yelled.

"Buffy," Angel said and stood up. Buffy had watched brush himself out. "I'm fine. That was only a dream. There is no such thing as vampires."

Buffy cocked her head to the left and stared at him in confusion. "But Angel, you are a vampire."

Angel shook his head. "No Buffy, I'm not." He had said. "That was only in your dreams. This is reality and you need to learn accept that."

Buffy sighed and frowned. "Angel, I'm not sure if I can do this. Faith is my sister for crying out loud!"

Angel had wrapped his arms around Buffy. "You can do this Buffy," he had said. "You are one of the strongest people that I know. Even if your dreams weren't real, that doesn't mean that you went through a lot and you did. You broke through every single obstacle your subconscious gave you. The coma patients that I knew never got through their dreams…but you had and you can do this. You need to do this."

Buffy thought about his words for a moment. Then she had decided that he was right. She had survived through a lot. She had briefly remembered all the times where she could have died over the last seven years, only she hadn't. Buffy looked up at Angel as she had realized all of this. Buffy had also realized that she was scared. This was a big step into life and Buffy had realized she had needed to make new friends and a new family.

"I'm scared." Buffy had told him honestly and Angel smiled at her.

He leaned down and kissed the top of her forehead. "You can do this Buffy, you're one of the strongest people that I know."

Buffy had smiled. "Will I see you again?"

Angel chuckled and smiled. "Look into your heart. I will be there." The summer sky world had started to fade away. Buffy woke up and stared at her digital clock. She sighed again heavily. It was going to be a long walk to the future prize, and that was her life.


	9. Chapter 6 Continued: A New Start

**Chapter Six Continued: A New Start**

Buffy had awoken from that odd dream and realized that it had been awhile since she had seen Angel. The last time she had seen him, he had literally walked into the middle of her last battle with the First Evil's priest guy. He had offered to help, but it was one of those things that someone really had to finish once they had started it. It was like when one was a small child and made a complete wreck in the room. The only thing that was left un-messed with was the books neatly structured on top of the shelf. Those books had to be taken out of those shelves. Buffy smiled at the memory of her being a little girl. It was nice, being able to remember. Buffy had closed her eyes and gasped. She felt as though she were in a memory. She was waiting at home for her parents to return.

Buffy was wearing pig tails and a summer dress with white sneakers. She had been sitting at a little play-table that was in the living room, playing with play dough. Then the front door had opened and Buffy grew excited. She jumped out of her seat and ran to the front door.

"Mommy, daddy, you're home!" Buffy had said with eagerness. She ran to the front door and hugged her parents. Behind them was a tiny brunette, about Buffy's size and age. It was her sister Faith, returning from the doctor.

"Hello Buffy," Joyce had said with a chuckle. "Where's the babysitter?"

A teenage girl with dirty blond hair came running into the room. "I'm here," she said. "I was just making us a snack. I'm sorry, I didn't expect you back until a little bit later." Buffy had turned around and recognized the girl immediately. Her tiny eyes widened. It was Tara! Buffy had never been so surprised in her entire life. Apparently, she had seen Tara before.

Joyce picked up her head and smiled. "Oh it is okay Tara, how much do we owe you?" To Buffy's right side of her, her father was fumbling through his wallet.

"Oh are you sure-sure you want to do that?" Tara had asked her.

Hank looked up and smiled. "Tara, you're like a part of the family." He had told her. "Of course we do, now how much do we owe you?"

Tara smiled. "Just forty dollars sir," she had said.

Hank smiled and handed her small green papers. Tara smiled. "Thank you Mr. and Mrs. Summers." She said.

Joyce smiled too. "Tara, you're so great with children, I mean, our little Buffy and little Faith love you. Perhaps you should become a teacher when you grow up."

Tara smiled back at her. "Thanks Mrs. Summers," She said and put the money in her back pocket. "Buffy was a good girl, she is never any trouble." She said and turned to Buffy and ruffled her hair. "We had fun playing monopoly."

Buffy looked at Joyce. "It was a hard game, I got stuck in jail." Faith laughed and Buffy glared at her.

"Not funny, you'll be the one in jail!" Buffy yelled and smiled.

She ran and hugged Faith. Faith smiled and hugged her tightly. Buffy could tell that Faith had generally missed her while the two of them were apart. Buffy hugged her sister tightly and that world had quickly faded away. Buffy had opened her eyes and yawned. That was tiring and she wasn't able to remember what she had been doing before she had the memory. Then she had quickly remembered that she had she just woken up and that she had seen Angel in her dream. Now she had a memory of her sister…? What the hell was going on? Buffy's mind was fuzzy. She had just opened up two more steps and that was getting her life back together. It was also saying good bye to the old life that she had had.

There was a single, tiny part of Buffy that had accepted Faith into her heart. This had made her smile. Perhaps she wasn't going to hate Faith for the rest of her life. Perhaps she was going to learn to love her again. Buffy had figured she must have loved her at one point, given what the memory had presented to her. Buffy briefly realized that Faith was talking about jail in her memory and wondered what that had meant. She wondered if Faith had ever been to jail and why she was at the hospital so much to visit her. Had she truly missed her sister or was it because she was there as well? This had left Buffy with many thoughts and she began to ponder them.

Buffy had wanted to give Faith a chance. Perhaps she really was different in this reality and the thought of Tara not being too much older than her, gave Buffy the yearning to get in touch with her old babysitter. In her dreams, Tara had helped her through a really rough time. Of course, it was real and rough in her mind. Nonetheless, Buffy had wanted to find her and Tara wasn't the only one that Buffy had wanted to look up. She had wanted to look up the Harris' as well. Buffy was overjoyed.


End file.
